Employees
UBM employs over 6,000 people around the world. Attracting, recruiting, engaging and retaining a highly skilled and diverse pool of talent remains one of UBM’s highest priorities. As described on page 34, ensuring our continuing ability to attract and retain key talent is an important risk factor for UBM and our employment policies, which are described below, are designed to address and mitigate that risk.
Positive culture
Throughout 2007, we have pursued our stated aims of creating profitable growth and a positive culture at UBM. Our investment in training and development, our focus on performance management through appraisal systems, the use of engagement surveys to identify priorities and our continuing involvement in local community projects and charities, all contribute to creating a positive working environment. Reward and recognition schemes across UBM, such as the CMPi annual People and Culture Awards and the CMP Asia quarterly Staff Values Awards, also recognise the exceptional work of individuals and teams.
Employment policies
Detailed employment policies are in place across our businesses, which are constantly reviewed and adapted to meet the changing needs of the business and the workforce. Employment policies and practices cover areas such as recruitment, training, flexible working, paid leave (e.g. maternity, paternity, adoption, parental, carer and sabbatical leave), diversity, data protection, antimalpractice (‘Whistleblowing’) and other policies tailored to meet, and often exceed, the requirements of local jurisdictions.
In 2007, CMP Technology was ranked no. 2 in the US on the list of Top 100 adoption-friendly work places as assessed by the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption and was praised for giving financial assistance and paid leave to employees going through the adoption process. As detailed below, we believe that our employment policies including cutting edge flexible working policies have a significant effect on engagement and retention. The voluntary turnover rate across UBM for 2007 was 15.9% (compared to a voluntary turnover rate in the UK media and publishing sector of 18.8% and a voluntary turnover rate for the US private sector of 26.5%).
Diversity
We are a global business with employees, customers, partners and suppliers from a wide range of cultures and backgrounds. It is crucial to our success that we tap into these differences to enable us to respond to the rapidly changing business environment, to meet the diverse needs of our customer base, and to enhance creativity and personal development.
UBM aims to create a culture of diversity and inclusion, where the unique talents that every individual can bring to the business are fully recognised. We have equal opportunities policies and programmes in place to ensure employees are selected and promoted solely on the basis of their skills and ability to do the job, regardless of age, gender, race, religion, sexual orientation or disability. Employees receive training on diversity, equality and anti-harassment issues. For example, every employee in the UK undertakes diversity workbook training and completes an interactive test when they join UBM – a training tool which provides measurable results – and extensive anti-harassment training programmes take place in the United States.
Specific efforts are also made to increase the number of women and people of diverse backgrounds in senior executive roles, including training and coaching, internships, and ensuring that benefits and leave programmes encourage retention of talent. 45% of the participants in the Business Leaders Programme 2007, UBM’s flagship development programme, were women. As at December 2007, 59% of the employees across UBM were women and 40% of senior executives across UBM were women. Cutting edge flexible working policies were introduced in 2000, which were specifically designed to meet individual personal circumstances and to satisfy business needs. Since their introduction, we believe these policies have made a significant contribution to the recruitment and retention of a more diverse workforce. In 2007, CMP Technology won the Alfred P Sloan Award for Business Excellence in Workplace Flexibility, distinguishing the Company as one of the top practitioners of workplace flexibility in the US. In an employee engagement survey at PRNewswire, US employees rated PRN 15 points above the norm and UK employees, 13 points above the norm on work life balance.
Just one illustration of the success of our policies is the fact that in 2007, for the fourth consecutive year, CMP Technology received ‘Best Place To Work GLBT Equality’ seal from the Human Rights Campaign Foundation, as one of America’s best companies for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender workers. UBM was also rated silver standard in May 2007 in the Opportunity Now diversity benchmarking exercise. As at December 2007, 11.35% of the workforce in the UK who stated their ethnic background in monitoring questionnaires were of black or minority ethnic backgrounds (against a general ethnic population of 8% in the 2001 UK Census). In the US, 22.0% of the workforce is of minority ethnic background (against a general minority ethnic population of 22.9% in the 2000 US Census).
UBM recognises the specific needs of individuals and, in particular, ensures that appropriate adjustments are made to enable the employment of disabled persons. Should employees become disabled during employment, every effort is made, through appropriate training or other adjustments, to accommodate their disability and enable them to continue to pursue their career.
People development and training
UBM places a particular emphasis on the personal development of all staff to achieve their full potential. Employees across UBM participate in ongoing appraisal and assessment procedures, and within each business both internal and external training is provided, ranging from management ‘boot camps’, leadership development programmes, webinars and formal classroom training to individual coaching programmes. For example, in 2007, PR Newswire completely revamped and enhanced its new hire orientation programme, expanded on its ‘building a better boss’ initiative and launched new ‘one on one’ coaching to provide key management personnel with an even greater level of support. Staff are encouraged to and assisted in obtaining relevant qualifications. In addition, intra-group transfers are facilitated providing both development opportunities for staff and ensuring that their skills and expertise are applied to the most relevant parts of the business. The participants in the CMPi Leadership Development Programme are actively working with five nongovernmental organisations in Brazil as part of the programme.
UBM actively seeks to attract the best talent, and development opportunities and management skills training are provided throughout the organisation. Over 90% of the 2007 graduates of the CMPi sponsored graduate recruitment programme secured permanent positions at CMPi at the end of their year on the scheme, and many participants from previous years have gone on to forge very successful careers within the organisation. We also aim to develop tomorrow’s leaders through the flagship Business Leaders Programme. The 2007 programme brought together delegates from across UBM and the modular programme, spanning the year, is very successful in its aims of developing high-calibre business leaders and raising their profile within UBM, and provides a valuable tool in UBM succession planning process. Another programme is in place for 2008 with selected delegates from the various global businesses.
Reward strategies
UBM has developed policies on compensation, rewards and benefits that ensure that the best talent is recruited, retained and engaged. The objective is to ensure that all staff in all locations are treated fairly and we aim to follow best employment practices within the local markets in which we operate. We promote and reward based on merit and the individual’s contribution to the business. Reward arrangements include bonus and long-term incentive schemes payable on the achievement of financial and personal objectives. A wide range of other benefits are also available including Company pension schemes, life assurance and medical facilities. In the event of redundancies, UBM makes sure that proper procedures are followed with affected staff in accordance with Company policies, and that redundant staff are treated fairly in accordance with local best practices.
Communication
UBM believes that clear and open communication with employees is fundamental to fostering a positive culture and achieving our business aims. An ongoing dialogue with employees is achieved through staff surveys (with follow up action plans), appraisals, newsletters, divisional Intranets, town hall meetings, web chats, blogging, innovative use of webinars and wikis. Regular UBM– wide e-mail updates from the CEO keep employees informed of business strategy and developments. In addition, employee consultative forums in place in UBM businesses offer a valuable vehicle for the exchange of information with management and also give employees the opportunity to meet and share views.
HR Metrics
Having conducted research into the HR Metrics that should be measured, UBM began a process in 2007 of streamlining our metrics and focused on those areas where value can be added to the business by greater understanding of people issues and trends. This included the development and implementation of appropriate performance management systems in UBM companies and measurement of levels of staff engagement across the business. Annual staff attitude and engagement surveys, already in place in some businesses, were extended to the whole of UBM, providing invaluable information to ensure that all staff are actively engaged with the business and are committed to the delivery of business objectives. At PR Newswire, a number of departmental working groups were created that reviewed the survey data in liaison with colleagues, to identify initiatives that could positively impact employee engagement.
Sharing best practice
The Company continues to work with organisations such as Opportunity Now, The Employers Forum On Age, Stonewall and The Corporate Leadership Council. Membership of these organisations affords the opportunity to identify and share best practices and to develop effective networks with other employers.
Health and safety
We recognise our responsibility to provide a safe working environment for employees, and for exhibitors and visitors to our many conferences and exhibitions. All divisional CEOs are responsible for making sure that their businesses operate in compliance with relevant health and safety legislation and procedures. During 2007 we introduced an online health and safety reporting system to assist in fulfilling our health and safety responsibilities more effectively and efficiently and to allow us to monitor and improve our performance. During 2007 the system was implemented in all UK divisions. The system enables a series of safety checklists and assessments to be carried out on a formalised basis and provides an electronic follow up for any resulting hazard referral. During 2008 it is proposed to roll out the reporting system to overseas jurisdictions as appropriate.
Benefits
For the past two years UBM has, through its Salary Exchange Scheme, offered a Cycle2work scheme, developed with Halfords, which enables its UK employees to take advantage of the Government’s tax exemption on bicycles provided for staff to cycle to work. By the end of 2007 over 100 employees (being 6.4% of the UK workforce) had entered the scheme and were cycling to work.
